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The Atlanta Ripper
The Atlanta Ripper, a.k.a. Jack the Ripper of Atlanta, was a still-unidentified serial killer who was responsible for murdering at least fifteen women. Brief Case History In 1911, the bloody body of Sadie Holley was found. Her head was roughly bashed in with a fist-sized rock, and her throat had been deeply slashed. When police started the investigation, they found out that Holley was her killer's eighth victim. The press named this mysterious killer The Atlanta Ripper. The first confirmed murders happened in 1911 and the last ones occurred in 1912. All victims were found with their throats slashed, covered in blood, and usually their heads bashed in from fists or blunt objects. The few survivors described the killer as tall black man. Police arrested and interrogated several suspects, but all of them were later released. Modus Operandi The Atlanta Ripper targeted black women who were walking alone after sunset. His murders were extremely brutal; the victims' throats were deeply slashed, nearly in the point of decapitation. Their heads were also beaten and sometimes crushed, using fists or blunt objects, such as rocks or coupling pins. In the case of Mary Putnam, he also disemboweled and removed her heart post-mortem. Sometimes, he also took victims' shoes (which were found later). Suspects * Henry Brown, a.k.a "Lawton Brown": ** Arrested on August 12, 1912 for the murder of Eva Florence, which happened in November 1911. ** Florence's murder took place at the same time during the killing spree. ** Police also found bloody clothes at his home. * John Daniel: ** Was acquitted when the jury discovered that the Atlanta police had beaten a confession out of him. ** No further details were given. Known Victims This list includes both confirmed and possible victims. All of the following murders took place in Atlanta, Georgia. * October 3, 1910: Maggie Brook, 23 * 1911: ** January 22: Rosa Trice, 35 ** February 18: An unidentified female ** May 28: Mary "Belle" Walker ** June 15: Addie Watts ** June 27: Lizzie Watkins ** July 1: Lena and Emma Lou Sharpe *** Lena Sharpe, 40 *** Emma Lou Sharpe, 20 ** July 8: Mary Yedell, 22 ** July 10: Sadie Holley ** August 31 : Mary Ann Duncan, 20 ** November 10: Minnie Wise ** November 21 : Mary Putnam ** December 8: Zella Favors * 1912: ** January 20: Pearl Williams ** April 6: Mary Kate Sledge ** April 15: An unidentified female ** Unspecified date in April: Marietta Logan ** May 11: An unidentified female ** Unspecified date: Ellen Maddox * March 1913: Laura Smith On Criminal Minds *Season Three **"In Name and Blood" - While the Atlanta Ripper has yet to be directly mentioned or referenced on the show, he appears to have been an inspiration for the episode's unsub, Joe Smith - Both were serial killers who targeted women of a certain race (blacks in the Atlanta Ripper's case, Caucasians in Smith's) and cut out their hearts (though the Atlanta Ripper only did this once). Sources * Wikipedia's article about the Atlanta Ripper Category:Stubs Category:Unsolved Cases Category:Real Serial Killers Category:Real World Criminals Category:Real Life Killers Category:Deceased Real World Criminals Category:Real People Category:Unreferenced Criminals